Welcome to Ferros Bioblog; a blog dedicated for the classic branches of Biology like (Geo)Botanic, Ecology and Systematic by Sebastian Mildenberger

Donnerstag, 19. Mai 2011

Plant of the Day (May 19th, 2011) - Carex elongata L.

Carex elongata L.is the second species of the Genus Carex, which you can find in the wetland area at Lake Unterbach in Düsseldorf, Western Gemany. In Germany, we called it the “Langjährige Segge” oder “Walzen-Segge”. Unfortunately I haven't found an English translation, but the Latin name means something like “Stretched Sedge”.

C. elongata - flowers

In contrast to Carex nigra (L.) Reichenbach, Carex elongata L. belongs to the sub-genus Homostachyae. That means, female and male ears are not differently shaped

C. elongata - flowers

Its a small, grass-like herb with highs between 30 and 60 centimetres. The leaves are grass-green and very long. They are located only at the ground of the triangular shoot-axis. Unlike at C. nigra, the stomata are located at the underside of the leaves.

C. elongata - leaves

The flowers forming an ear-like inflorescence. This ears are less dense at the base, that means, here the single flowers are not so close together. That gave the species also its name (elongata means “stretched”). They shimmer also brownish.

C. elongata - flowers

Like C. nigra, C. elongata is a typical plant for wetlands, marshes or swamps. It prefers places with a very wet and nutrient-poor soils. It native to Europe but can also been found in Western Asia.